Water main break shuts down Saranac Lake street (update)

December 4, 2012

SARANAC LAKE - Village Department of Public Works crews have fixed a water main break that closed a section of Church Street for part of the day and night Monday.

DPW Superintendent Jeff Dora said repairs to the water main were completed by about 10 p.m. Monday night, roughly eight hours after the break was first detected. It happened on Church Street near G.O. Automotive and Adirondack Bank.

Dora said "old age" was to blame.

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Saranac Lake village Department of Public Works crews dig up Church Street Monday afternoon to repair a water main break.(Enterprise photo — Chris Morris)

"It's a two-bolt cast system, and basically every so often the bolts will rot a little bit, and once they do the pressure tries to separate them," he said. "It's an old system, and this is what old age will cause - problems periodically."

Crews were digging up a section of Church Street when an Enterprise reporter visited the site around 3:30 p.m. Monday. Village Manager John Sweeney said G.O. Automotive was the only water user affected by the break to the 10-inch water main.

"There will be some rerouting of traffic at this time to facilitate repairs," Sweeney said at the time. "They're going to be at this for a while."

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Church Street was closed from Woodruff Street to Bloomingdale Avenue, although motorists were still able access Rite-Aid, Grand Union, First Niagara Bank and Twin D Automotive.

Dora said his crews were able to isolate the break on a short section of water line between the bridge over the Saranac River and Woodruff Street.

"It went flawless," he said. "We got to the pipe, cut the pipe, put a repair to it, got it backfilled and opened the road back up to traffic. It's just another day in Saranac Lake."